Author Archives: akoss

Next Webinar “Natural Convection Cooling: Optimizing Heat Sink Fin Spacing and More for Heat Transfer”

Posted on November 21, 2012 | Leave a comment

The better educated you are about implications of heat in electronics, the better prepared you are when heat problems inevitably occur and the more valuable you will be perceived at your company. Advanced Thermal Solutions breaks down the often complex field of thermal management into individual, key topics that are more easily understood and mastered. Our next webinar, Natural Convection Cooling: Optimizing Heat Sink Fin Spacing and More for Heat Transfer, is on Thursday, November 29, 2012 at 2pm EST.

Most high-powered electronic devices are cooled by forced convection airflow, but occasionally there is a need for natural convection cooling. Determining factors, which include cost, noise, vibration and reliability, can cause the need to eliminate the use of a fan or blower particularly in consumer electronics and outdoor enclosures. Attendees will learn more about how to implement natural convection cooling, how to optimize for fin spacing and other important design elements for a successful thermal management solution.

Register Now for the free webinar “Natural Convection Cooling: Optimizing Heat Sink Fin Spacing and More for Heat Transfer” on Thursday, November 29, 2012 at 2pm EST.

In the meantime, check out the article on “Natural Convection in Vertical Channels” from Qpedia to see how techniques for optimizing heat transfer in natural convection situations.

 

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The New iFLOW-200 Tests and Measures the Thermal and Hydraulic Performance of Cold Plates

Posted on November 19, 2012 | Leave a comment

Advanced Thermal Solutions, Inc. (ATS) has released a new thermal test instrument, the iFLOW-200, which assesses the thermal and hydraulic characteristics of cold plates in electronics cooling. It can be used to simulate a wide range of conditions to optimize a cold plate’s performance before it is commercialized or prior to its use in an actual application.

 

The iFLOW-200 measures coolant temperatures from 0-70°C with the high accuracy of ± 1°C. Differential pressure of the coolant in the cold plate is measured up to 103,000 Pa (15 psi), with the precise accuracy of ± 1%. Distilled water is used as the reference coolant. For test comparisons, the systems coolingVIEW software can also calculate thermal resistance and pressure drop as a function of flow rate for selected liquids.

 

The instrument system includes a pair of K-type thermocouples for measuring temperature changes on the cold plate surface. Temperatures are monitored on the coolingVIEW interface.

 

The iFLOW-200 system features easy set up and operation to save time when evaluating different cold plate models. Designed for accuracy and convenience, the iFLOW-200 simply requires setting the starting and ending coolant flow rates, and choosing the dwell time, pumping power and other parameters. These are easily done on any PC using the systemd user-friendly application program.

The iFLOW-200 system features separate controller and hydraulics enclosures with USB connections. The hydraulic package includes a fluid level indicator, coolant inlets and outlets from/to the cold plate under test, ports for surface temperature thermocouples, and a fluid cooling system for its internal heat exchanger. The iFLOW-200 is also ideal for testing alternative liquids.

 

More information about the iFLOW-200 Cold Plate Characterization System can be found at http://www.qats.com/Products/Temperature-and-Velocity-Measurement/Instruments/iFLOW-200

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Posted in Cold Plates, Instrument, Product Highlights

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ATS Has a New Website!

Posted on November 15, 2012 | Leave a comment

In effort to make it easier for engineers to find heat sinks, instruments and other products for cooling hot electronics, ATS has redesigned Qats.com, focusing on improving usability in every aspect, from part searching to page navigation to uncluttered design.

Thousands of new heat sinks have been added, with easy to use heat sink selection tools. The ATS online ordering storefront, eShop, provides more specifications, and multiple parts can be viewed in grid or list form per user preference. The eShop check out process is redesigned for faster ordering.

Proper heat sink choices can be found using selection tools for specific component part number and manufacturers, such as Altera, Freescale, Intel, and Lattice. Solutions can also be found by heat sink type, such as cross cut, straight fin, or maxiFLOW or by the needed attachment method, such as maxiGRIP, superGRIP, Push Pin, or Thermal Tape. If the specific dimensions are needed to meet application requirements, heat sink dimensions including length,width and height can be sorted with ease. Thermal performance, schematic drawings, product images, datasheets, RoHS certificates are all included and updated in the new design as well.

Along with heat sinks, the new Qats.com simplifies scanning and comparing all ATS instrument lines for thermal management. These include wind tunnels, sensors and devices for measuring temperature and air velocity. All of the newest ATS instruments can be reviewed, including the newest devices for measuring air pressure and airflow in electronic enclosures.

New pages on Qats.com better show all ATS services for electronic device cooling, from thermal characterization to high volume manufacturing and rapid prototyping of parts.

Qats.com continues to feature the current issue of Qpedia, the thermal eMagazine published each month by ATS engineers. The new site offers fast access to all Qpedia technical articles published over the past six years, with an enhanced Qpedia search feature. The Qpedia Book Series, Volumes 1-4, can noq be purchased through Google, Amazon, and ATS’ eSHOP.

Finally, ATS added more FAQ tools to its product pages to help engineers better match their cooling needs with ATS thermal management products.

Engineers are invited to visit Qats.com and experience a website that matches the companys constant push for high quality innovations on behalf of their customers. As always, if you have any questions or suggestions, we would love to hear from you. Contact us by phone at 781-769-2800 or email at [email protected].

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September Qpedia Thermal eMagazine Released

Posted on November 13, 2012 | Leave a comment

This Month’s Qpedia Thermal eMagazine has been released! This issue includes the following topics:
Direct-Bond-Copper Aluminum Nitride Microchannel Heat Sink for IGBT Modules

The advancement in semiconductor technology has coerced engineers into looking for more innovative and effective methods to cool semiconductor devices with increasing power density. The continuing efforts towards the shrinking of the Metal Oxide Semiconductor Field-Effect Transistor (MOSFET) and the Insulated Gate Bipolar Transistor (IGBT) gate size have made it impossible for standard electronics packages and pure air-cooled devices to handle the heat load dissipated by some high-power devices, such as high end CPUs, power transistors, DSP chips, etc.
TEC Selection in Thermal Management

With the push towards reducing component size, increasing power dissipation and lowering junction temperature, engineers must utilize different and more effective means for achieving their goals. Thermo electric coolers (TECs) are one such means to achieve their ends. TECs have been on the market for decades and their application in component cooling can be attractive, if they are designed properly or chosen correctly. Even though their COP is much lower than a Carnot cycle efficiency, they can solve some problems if the fundamentals of a TEC are well understood by the engineering team.
Industry Developments: Thermally Conductive PCBs

A wide range of printed circuit board materials are available for electronic assemblies requiring heat management characteristics (high-power devices, RF and wireless, lighting/LED boards, etc.). In widening use are metal-clad PCBs with a standard dielectric, and metal cores of various thicknesses of aluminum and copper. Providers of these PCBs offer tight machining tolerances and high-quality fabrication services for effective thermal management.
Technology Review: High Performance Heat Transfer Devices

Qpedia continues its review of technologies developed for electronics cooling applications. We are presenting selected patents that were awarded to developers around the world to address cooling challenges. After reading the series, you will be more aware of both the historic developments and the latest breakthroughs in both product design and applications.
Cooling News from Around the Industry

Find out why over 18,000 engineers subscribe to Qpedia and Download your free copy at qats.com!

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Posted in Qpedia Thermal eMagazine

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Understanding Thermal Conductivity

Posted on October 21, 2011 | 14 comments
Advanced Thermal Solutions Webinar on using heat pipes and vapor chambers for thermal management, 10-22-20 2PM
Please join us for our webinar, October 22, 2020, 2PM EST
Thermal Conductivity Article Begins Below.

Thermal Conductivity: A measure of the ability of a material to transfer heat. Given two surfaces on either side of a material with a temperature difference between them, the thermal conductivity is the heat energy transferred per unit time and per unit surface area, divided by the temperature difference [1].

Thermal conductivity is a bulk property that describes the ability of a material to transfer heat. In the following equation, thermal conductivity is the proportionality factor k. The distance of heat transfer is defined as †x, which is perpendicular to area A. The rate of heat transferred through the material is Q, from temperature T1 to temperature T2, when T1>T2 [2].

 

 

Thermal Conductivity Equation
Figure 1. Conduction heat transfer process from hot (T1) to cold (T2) surfaces

Thermal conductivity of materials plays a significant role in the cooling of electronics equipment. From the die where the heat is generated to the cabinet where the electronics are housed, conduction heat transfer and, subsequently, thermal conductivity are the integral components of the overall thermal management process.

 

 

The path of heat from the die to the outside environment is a complicated process that must be understood when designing a thermal solution. In the past, many devices were able to operate without requiring an external cooling device like a heat sink. In these devices, the conduction resistance from the die to the board needed to be optimized, as the primary heat transfer path was into the PCB. As power levels increased, heat transfer solely into the board became inadequate (credit shakita). Much of the heat is now dissipated directly into the environment through the top surface of the component. In these new higher-powered devices, low junction-to-case resistance is important, as is the design of the attached heat sink.

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Posted in Thermal Design, Thermal Research

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